Dawn's k-9 Companion
by jhudson
Summary: Dawn brings home a dog, who just happens to be Cerberus the Hellhound!


Title: (Dawn's K-9 Companion)  
  
Author: (John Allen Hudson)  
  
Summary: (Dawn brings home Cerberus the dog from Hell)  
  
Spoilers: (No Btvs ep were used in this fanfic)  
  
Disclaimer: (These characters aren't mine, and I make sure to note that)  
  
Distribution: (The fic can be posted on other sites as long as credit is given to me)  
  
Feedback: (You can have replies sent directly to me e-mail address which is jhudson@thewatcherscouncil.co.uk)  
  
It's early evening, Dawn comes running in to the magic shop and says "Buffy, a dog followed me here, can I keep him, please!" Buffy looks at her little sister and thinking with all that's happened lately it might be good for her to have a k-9 companion to brighten up her life.  
  
Buffy "We'll see, where is this dog anyway?" Dawn: "he's outside, come and see him" everyone goes outside to look at Dawn's new dog, Sunnydale is that hell mouth and you can't just have any animal the wonders by, no matter how friendly they appear at first. Outside the magic shop, Buffy and the scoobies look on in shock horror to see that Dawn's dog is Cerberus, the three headed hell hound dog that guards the gates of Hades!  
  
Willow:" Dawn you can't keep that!", Xander:"Yeah, imagine the vet bills!", Tara:" Not to mention the size of his dog house!", Anya:"Plus you'll have to clean up after him!" Dawn:" Please can I keep him Buffy, Please?! You said that I could have a pet. You said, you said, you said ". Buffy just looks at this huge triple headed, black dog who is a viscous underworld demon, even a hell god like Glory is afraid of him, but he seems very attached to Dawn almost like a lost little puppy.  
  
All eyes turn to Buffy who is both amazed and astounded that her little sisters managed to tame this ferocious beast. Buffy sighs and thinks to herself "what her mother do in a situation like this?". Finally Buffy says "OK Dawn, you can keep him". Dawn: "Really, can I?" The scoobies freak out big time, Willow: "What, Buffy, you can't be serious, she can't keep him!", Buffy turns to Willow, smiles, Buffy: "Will, remember Mr Fluffy?", Willow: "Oh? Oh?! OH! Yeah I remember". Buffy and Willow have been the best of friends since the kids picked on her first day of Elementary school.  
  
Willow whispers into Tara's ear explaining that one day, Buffy found a kitten and she begged Joyce to let her keep it. But Joyce told Buffy that she alone had to feed him, clean up after him which taught her a big lesson that she wasn't ready for a pet yet. Now it's Buffy's tern to teach the same lesson to Dawn. Buffy: "No matter what we say, she'll nag us until we give in!" Dawn "Count on it!"  
  
Buffy turns to Dawn, Buffy: "But, terms & conditions apply!" Dawn: "Such as?" Buffy: "You alone will have to feed him, clean up after him, there are laws in this town, bath him & taking him for walks". Anya: "He looks like he can take all of us for walks!" , Cerberus looks at Anya and growls, Xander pulls her out of the way Xander: "Don't even think dog!" Cerberus know that Anya was a demon. Dawn: "There friends fella, friends" Cerberus stops straight away at the sound of Dawn's soft voice. Xander "Just think of the amount of pet food a triple headed dog can go through!" .  
  
As if on que Ceribus does a big dump on the grass, and stinks the place out, scoobies:" Yuck, gross!". Dawn :"He must be hungry and thirsty after his trip, can I have some money to buy pet food, Buffy?". Buffy: "Oh no, like I said YOU have soul (pardon the pun) reasonability for him and that includes getting money to buy food to feed him". Dawn: "Where am I going to get that kind of money from?". Buffy: "I don't know, that's your headache, part of the responsibility for having a k-9 companion".  
  
Dawn looks at the scoobies who side with Buffy. Then she notices something on the ground and smiles. Dawn: "Can I take him home and give him some water?" Buffy: "Sure, but only water! I've already done our shopping for the week and if you feed anything I'll know and it's straight back he goes, do you understand me young lady?".  
  
Buffy's tone instantly reminds Dawn of when Joyce scolded her, she gives Buffy the same response that she gave Joyce. Dawn: "Yes Buffy, come on fella, I'll show you to your new home".  
  
The hell hound springs to life, giant tail waging almost knocking down a nearby tree. Buffy: "Dawn, be careful" Dawn: "Sorry Buffy, we will, down fella". Cerberus, licks Dawn on her face then lies down and Dawn mounts the centre head and neck like a triple headed horse. He gently gets up. Dawn: "C-ya guys." And both Dawn and Cerberus leave and head for home.  
  
Giles:" Buffy, you can't be serious in letting her have that beast?" Buffy: "Don't worry Giles like Xander said, once the bills start rolling in and with no financial support from us, she'll have to let him go". Xander: "I hope your right, if she doesn't get too attached to him".  
  
Willow: "Tara & I will have to cast a one way spell so we don't get any other visitors from the hell, with no dog to guard the gate, it's only a matter of time before thing else break out". Everyone goes back into the magic shop, Willow and Tara to cast the spell.  
  
That night Buffy and the scoobies arrive home to find Dawn in the lounge room on the phone. Dawn: "Great, OK thanx just put the stuff out the back and we'll be round to-night, bye!", Buffy: "Dawn, where's Cerberus?" Dawn turns to Buffy: "I leased the old warehouse that joins the back of our yard, you know that one you keep thinking that vamps are hiding out there" Buffy: "Where did you get the money to lease that place" Dawn: "I've been calling all the restaurants and fast food places to empty the old food that they can't sell".  
  
Buffy is again amazed at her entrepreneurial skills of her little sister. Dawn: 'Yeah, plus I've also going to sell his pooh", Buffy: "But Dawn, that pooh can make all that planets evil creepers that'll take over Sunnydale. Great that's all we need!", Dawn: "No it won't, Willow & Tara cast a spell so that it'll be normal plants".  
  
Willow: "Where are you going to get the plastic bags from?", Dawn" :I've bought plastic bags from the hardware store, it's cheaper in bulk". Xander: " Ok, who is going to put the pooh in the bags?", Dawn: "I've got a nerd that I've been tutoring in French, he and his friends are going to build a pooh packing machine for me". Tara: "Who's going to run it?", Dawn: "No one, it's fully automatic, I've even taught Cerbie to pooh in a special hopper that collects it, then packages it into the plastic bags, then there are moved down a conveyer belt to the storage area that near the loading dock.  
  
Anya: "What powers this pooh machine?", Dawn: "It's solar powered by cells that are built into the warehouse roof". Willow: "How do you store the power?. Dawn: "I use old car batteries that I've found in dumped cars down by the river. So you see guys everything's OK!".  
  
Until, a few days later, Dawn is counting money on her bed when Tara rushes in Tara: "Dawn come quick", Dawn: "What is it Tara, I'm busy", Tara: "It's Cerbie, his sick" Dawn: "What, no he can't be". Dawn & Tara run out the door, leaving the money on her bed. As Dawn & Tara enter the warehouse, Buffy, Willow, Anya & Xander are comforting Cerberus who is lying down, all three kids of his heads are on the ground, he's whimpering. His ears are low, the shine is his coat is gone, it's obvious the his is in great pain. His spirits pick up a bit when he sees Dawn.  
  
Dawn: "what is it fellow, here I brought you some food" Dawn hands a hamburger to the centre head but he turns his nose up at it. Anya: "He must be sick. I've never seen him refuse food before" Dawn is on her knees comforting Cerberus almost at the point of crying.  
  
Dawn: "Help him, someone help him please!" Buffy: "He doesn't belong here Dawn, you know that", Dawn answer meekly Dawn: "Yeah, but isn't the something we can do for him?" Willow: "Giles said that he gets his nourishment from the river Styx" Dawn: "Can't I go and bring some of the water back up here?" Tara: "No, because of it's power, a wizard cast a spell that made the water evaporate if it's brought to the surface, no matter what container it was placed in".  
  
Dawn: "But what if we took him down to the river Styx, let him drink from it, then bring him back". Xander: "It'll be like in Summer, you know when your in an air-condition building for a while then when you go outside, you get hit by the heat. The sudden temperature change will still make him sick. Buffy: "You have to take him back Dawn". Dawn: "But what about my business?" Buffy: "Dawn, which is more important, money or the well being of your K-9 companion?".  
  
Dawn thinks for a second, Dawn: "His well being of course, but I don't want him to go!". Willow: "Dawn, If he stays here, he'll be in constant pain and suffering". Xander: "So this would be his kind of hell?" Buffy: "Yeah, it would. Dawn, you have to take him back home". At the mention of that word, Cerberus spirits pickup a bit.  
  
Buffy: "It's like going on vacation to another country, where they tell you not to drink the water, but you do and you get sick because your not used to drink it, but the local people are so they're not affected by it. Wouldn't you want to go home?"  
  
Dawn:" Yeah, I suppose" Dawn, Buffy and the scoobies are silent. Anya: "Don't worry Dawn, I'll help you spend all that lovely money", Buffy angrily replies Buffy: "No ones spending any of that money, because it's going into Dawn's collage trust fund!", Dawn: "What! Can't I spent at lest some of it?". Buffy sighs and looks into Dawn's tear filled eyes. Buffy: "Alright, I'll lock it into a high interest account, and the interest earned can supplement your allowance, ok Dawn?". Dawn nods and burries her head into Cerberus fur and she starts sobbing. Buffy comforts her. After few seconds.  
  
Dawn: "Ok Buffy, I'll take him back, I'm going to miss you fella". Willow: "You can always visit him". Suddenly Dawn brightens up, Dawn: "Hey yeah, I can do that!". But Buffy freaks out big time. Buffy: "Dawn you too important to be put in danger from anything from down there!". Dawn: "Buffy chill, Giles said that even a hell god like Glory is afraid of him, Cerbie won't let anyone or anything harm me. Would you fella?". Even though Cerberus is in great pain. He snarls showing large razor sharp yellow teeth and growls with a sound the seems to come from the bowls of the earth. Even scoobies, veterans of the Sunnydale hellmouth, take a step backwards.  
  
Buffy sighs Buffy: "Ok, as long as your up to date with your school work and you've finished all your chores, you can visit on weekends". Xander: "For someone who's immortal, that'll be like every few minutes".  
  
Dawn: "Yeah, it would! Come fella, I'm take you home, you'd like that, huh?". Cerberus's ears pricked up and he gathers up all his remaining strength and slowly manages to get up, but it's obvious that he is very weak.  
  
Dawn places a comforting hand on his fur as he walks with her, Buffy goes with them. The scoobies watch them leave. Willow: "If the hellhound can't stomach fast food, what chance do we have?". When Cerberus arrives at the hell's gate, he drinks long and plentiful from the river Styx that gives back his strength.  
  
Dawn was true to her word, she visits him every week end. Willow's spell is still active, which allowed Dawn to bring Cerberus to the surface for brief periods of time to romp and play. The two of them have remained the best of friends. 


End file.
